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DUBAI // The sedentary lifestyle of Dubai is to blame for the many participants in this year’s Your Weight In Gold campaign.

Eating out, lack of exercise, a life spent indoors because of the heat, and long working hours were the reasons many of yesterday’s weigh-in participants said they felt they had gained the “Dubai stone” since moving to the emirate.

Organised by the Dubai Municipality, the health campaign, which began last year, gives participants one gram of gold for every kilogram they lose, although a minimum of 2kg is necessary to qualify.

Indian husband and wife Govind Singh, 28 and Yamini Jain, 27, have been in Dubai for just over a year and since living here have noticed their health suffer.

Between them they lost 12kg after having transformed their lifestyles shortly before the competition started. The competition, they said, gave them the impetus to simply work harder.

The pair agreed that having more disposable income and “social pressure” to go out every weekend had taken its toll. But with a loss of 8kg for Mr Singh and 4kg for Mrs Jain, they are pleased with the results.

Sayed Waiser, 32, lost 9.9kg since the challenge began in July. The software engineer from Pakistan lost the weight by himself, going to the gym and running. “It was hard but I’m proud of what I’ve done.”

Mark Fisher, 35, from the UK, is a father of two. He says life in Dubai meant going from being very active playing rugby to doing nothing. He began the challenge as a way to regain his fitness. “Now I can run after the kids again,” he said. The oil and gas worker lost 10.5kg by running, cycling and eating better. The last day to weigh in is tomorrow.